My Best Destination – Madeira Island

This is a series of blog entries from SkySurf.Travel’s first travel hiree, Romanna.

The volcanic origin of Madeira explains the landscape, height, and even climate differences in diverse parts of the island. It is the top of an underwater volcano, but there is no need to worry. Eruptions stopped more than six thousands years ago!

Ponta De Sao Lorenzo
Ponta De Sao Lorenzo

I was surprised by the erratic changes in the weather. For example, one day there was heavy rain, the sky was grey, and I had an unfortunate mood because of this. I decided to go to the north part of the island and there the weather was remarkably extraordinary. The sun was shining, blue sky – just a perfect day. Due to high mountains in the middle of the island, you never know about the actual situation on the other side of Madeira. There are more than 20 microclimates on the territory of the island! So never stop to discover something new!

As you already know from the previous article, 2/3 of Madeira is a forest. Thanks to the climate and frequent rainfall, these forests are full of unique trees and plants. Can you imagine – there are more than 1,200 different plants on this tiny island! It is the reason why Madeira’s forests are on the list of the UNESCO world heritage.

Want to spend some time one-on-one with nature? I can recommend the best place – Levadas!

Typical Levada Walk view
Typical Levada Walk view

The word “Levada” comes from the Portuguese word levar, which means to carry. It is the name for the small watering canals. The total length of all Levadas on Madeira island is more than 2,000 kilometers! They were built many years ago for water delivery from the north to dry areas in the south; this is how water comes to banana plantations, vineyards, fruit orchards, and vegetable gardens all over the island. Nowadays, lots of tourists prefer Levada walks to sunbathing.

My local friend showed me the WalkMe App, a mobile application guide for discovering Madeira Island. Also, you can visit their website here – http://walkmeguide.com/en/. The app costs 5 euros. To buy it or not is your decision, but I do recommend you to download the free demo – there you can find a list of the Top 10 Levadas of Madeira. It comes in handy and consists of different types of trails with varying distances and challenges.

Some of the walks are difficult, and you may need to have a guide with you. For example, Levada da Ribeira da Janela is 30 kilometers long and has nine tunnels along the way. One of them is almost 2 kilometers long! I’m sure you will need some special equipment, knowledge, and physical training.

Are you afraid of heights? There is a great challenge for you!

Can you see Faja Dos Padres Beach?
Can you see Faja Dos Padres Beach?

Faja Dos Padres – secret beach not far from Funchal. The easiest way to get there – by car. But you can’t get right to the beach – only to the top of the cliff. And there you need to take a Cable Car which goes down with an extreme angle! That was a scary experience. Maybe, I was even more impressed by the trip on the panoramic lift than by the place. Nevertheless, it is worth it.

Organic farming in Aja Dos Padres
Organic farming in Aja Dos Padres

When you come down, you will see lots of gardens and plantations. Due to the unique microclimate, farmers have the opportunity to grow subtropical plants. Banana plantations, vineyards, sugar cane, mango, avocado and lots of other fruits. Locals are proud of this organic farming and will be happy to tell you more about this area.

Besides agriculture, this place is famous by the beach with clear water. You may rent a sunbed and go swimming, or enjoy the view. There is a restaurant near the beach and some houses to stay for a night. You need to know that there is no other way to get out from that place – only by boat and by cable car which closes at 7 pm. So you need to be aware of timing or to rent a place to stay for a night.

Do not miss a chance to try local seafood! There is a wide variety of fish and seafood in every cafe and restaurant. My favorites were Lampas and Mussels. Both of them are kinds of clams, but I have never seen and tried Lampas before; served grilled with garlic and butter, then take a lemon and squeeze over it. Usually, you can find them in starters, but once I ate a few plates of them for dinner, so much tasty they are! A better taste with traditional bread – Bolo de Caco. It is typical for Madeira island and has rounded edges and a flattened form. Caco came from the cooking process – prepared on special hot coals named caco.

Traditional Lampas dish
Traditional Lampas dish

During my adventure, I made a rule – look for the place where locals eat. It always works! You will find better prices, better service, and a real taste of the country. Sometimes such sites have no social media accounts, and you can not read references on Trip Advisor; all they have is tasty food.

Want to try fresh mussels?
Want to try fresh mussels?

Madeira was the best destination on my trip. I fell in love with nature, weather, landscape, air, plants, food, and even with long tunnels! You can come here and discover it every time from different angles and find out new spots. This place is inspiring, and I am sure that everyone can find something special on Madeira island. Wish you to come and feel it on your own experience!

Ribeira da Janela beach
Ribeira da Janela beach

Hope you enjoyed and have changed your must-visit list already. See you soon!

– Romanna

Previous post: Top 5 Things to Do in Madeira Island

Next post: Freedom, Art, Madness. This Is a Barcelona City!

Romanna’s trip to eight cities (five islands) in Europe cost a total of $815 (flights only).  To build your own cheap multicity itinerary, visit SkySurf.Travel.

View more photos of Romanna’s European SkySurf.Travel adventure on Instagram

To read more of Romanna’s SkySurf.Travel adventure blogs, click here.

Top 5 Things to Do in Madeira Island

This is a series of blog entries from SkySurf.Travel’s first travel hiree, Romanna.

Greetings from the island of endless spring! Madeira Island is a place for true nature lovers where you can stay for a month and discover something new every day. You cannot be bored when there are so many unique places, caves, waterfalls, forests, and mountains around.

Banana plantation near Faja Dos Padres
Banana plantation near Faja Dos Padres

Nevertheless, I am going to tell you about the best activities!

1. Visit Funchal City

Funchal is the capital of the Madeira Islands. It is a small city surrounded by mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. All the monuments and places of interest from the tourist guides can be found in the historical part of the city. The first and foremost attraction is the Cable Car which takes you to the top of mountain Monte. The trip duration is 10 minutes, so you will have enough time to see all of the city, enjoy the view, and find out more places of interest. At the top, there is a palace and tropical garden with a unique plant collection from around the world.
One way Cable Car ticket costs 11 euros.
Entrance to the garden – 10 euros.

Interesting fact – The Cable Car works 364 days per year except for Christmas, but during my visit it was closed!

Let’s move forward. Do you like passion fruit?

Mercado Dos Lavradores - Famous Market in Funchal
Mercado Dos Lavradores – Famous Market in Funchal

If the answer is yes, that means I found the best place for you!

Mercado Dos Lavradores used to be a food market for locals, but now it’s one of the biggest tourists attractions. There are grocery, flower, and fish sections inside the market. Here you can find fruits you’ve never tried before. More than five types of passion fruits!

Different types of passion fruits in Mercado Dos Lavradores
Different types of passion fruits in Mercado Dos Lavradores

Different types of passion fruits in Mercado Dos Lavradores
Different types of passion fruits in Mercado Dos Lavradores

English tomato – a hybrid of tomato and passion fruit with a sweet taste of banana passion fruit, passion fruit pineapple, lemon passion fruit, and other flavors. Here you can also see anona – custard apple, cactus figs, and delicious fruit – it is a real name for monstera fruit!

Here you can take a spoon and try all the fruits you see around! But I do not recommend you to buy fruits on Mercado Dos Lavradores Market. Prices are far above market value. For example, most of the fruits cost more than 20 euros per kilo, while in the supermarket it will be around 10 euros.

Few words about the flowers. I am the biggest fan of the protea flower, and this place was awe-inspiring for me – I have never seen so many of them in one spot! Due to climate, Madeira has excellent growing conditions for proteas and other exotic flowers as Strelitzia and Leucospermum.

Flower section in Mercado Dos Lavradores. Take a look on the colorful uniform of the saleswoman
Flower section in Mercado Dos Lavradores. Take a look at the colorful uniform of the saleswoman

Do not miss a chance to walk through Santa Maria street. A tiny pedestrian street with lots of restaurants and shops. The main attraction is doors – all of them are painted with bright graffiti by different artists.

2. Watch the Sunrise on the Pico Arieiro

Sunrise on Pico Arieiro viewpoint
Sunrise on Pico Arieiro viewpoint

Pico Arieiro is the third highest peak of Madeira Island. If you want to enjoy the sunrise, you need to wake up early. The way from Funchal takes 40 minutes to get there by car + 10 minutes of walking to the viewport. You can be sure – it is worth it – 100 percent! If you have free time and lots of energy – walk to the highest peak Pico Ruivo (1,862m above sea level). Choose one of two walking passes and enjoy nature! One-way takes about 3 hours, and if you choose the round-trip, it will take 6-7 hours to cover the 12 km route.

3. Ponta De Sao Lorenzo One-Day Walk

Ponta De Sao Lorenzo view from a plane window
Ponta De Sao Lorenzo view from a plane window

The easternmost point of the island will be your last memory of Madeira – you will see it during your flight! But before taking the plane, I advise you to come for one day. After a 12 km walk, you won’t have enough energy and desire to go anywhere else. So, choose the day and make your way to the nature reserve. It used to be closed for tourists some years ago, but now you can easily take a walk through the Martian landscape.

The easternmost point of the Madeira island
The easternmost point of the Madeira island

Seems like another planet!

4. Drink Traditional Cocktails in a Bar for Locals

Traditional Nikita cocktail
Traditional Nikita cocktail

The best way to understand the culture is to find a place where locals spend time after work. On Madeira Island, there are many bars for football fans. Maybe the reason is the fact Cristiano Ronaldo was born in Madeira. I am not sure, but locals are addicted to this sport!

So, meet some locals, choose a small bar, and drink the traditional cocktail.
There are two types: the more strong Poncha, and the lighter one Nikita.
Poncha is made from rum, lemon and orange juice, and honey. Too sweet and too strong as for me.

Nikita – really strange milkshake cocktail which was named after a song of Elton John. Ingredients sound crazy – pineapple juice, vanilla ice cream, beer, white wine, and a slice of pineapple. Believe me; it tastes better than anything you can imagine!

5. Swim in the Natural Pools of Porto Moniz

Madeira is not the best choice for a beach vacation. Nevertheless, you can find some unique places to swim in the ocean. Pools are made by lava so you can see black lava rocks around.

Natural lava pools Piscinas Naturais
Natural lava pools Piscinas Naturais

This place is named Piscinas Naturais. Entrance fee is 1.50 euros. There is a snack bar on the territory, lockers, shower, and toilets – everything you need during your stay. This place is open till 7 pm, and after they close, you can enter free. When closed, you can swim and watch the sunset almost alone! All tourists interested in sunbathing leave this place quickly, so you have a chance to spend the evening in silent beauty.

There are more places to see in Madeira, so keep in touch.
Follow the blog updates!

– Romanna

Previous post: Somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean – Madeira Island

Next post: My Best Destination – Madeira Island

Romanna’s trip to eight cities (five islands) in Europe cost a total of $815 (flights only).  To build your own cheap multicity itinerary, visit SkySurf.Travel.

View more photos of Romanna’s European SkySurf.Travel adventure on Instagram

To read more of Romanna’s SkySurf.Travel adventure blogs, click here.

Somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean – Madeira Island

This is a series of blog entries from SkySurf.Travel’s first travel hiree, Romanna.

What does the word nature mean for you? Mountains? Beaches? Forests, waterfalls or fields of flowers?

Imagine you can find all this in one place. This is Madeira island!

Madeira landscape
Madeira landscape

Once I was told Madeira is a resort for older people. What a mistake! You should know that it is the fourth year Madeira is Europe’s leading island destination. Despite this high appraisal, don’t be afraid of thousands of tourists. The island has lots of places where you can find yourself face to face with raw nature.

So let me tell you about the fifth destination of my adventure.

Why Madeira

Madeira is an archipelago of four islands. Two of them are inhabited – Madeira island is the biggest and Porto Santo. You should know it is a Portuguese island, discovered in 1418.

Punta Sao Lorenzo - the easternmost point of the Madeira island
Punta Sao Lorenzo – the easternmost point of the Madeira island

The best time to visit Madeira is from April to October. But the weather is beautiful all the time thanks to the Gulf Stream. It is never too hot and too cold here. Sounds incredible – 18-24 degrees Celcius 365 days per year. Lots of tourists come here for a retreat. But you will never see them – they stay at the hotels and never go out. It is the best place to discover nature and trekking — hundreds walk for physical education and all preferences.

How to get to Madeira

Located in the Atlantic Ocean near Morocco (500 km) is Madeira. Despite the long-distance from continental Portugal (more than 1,000 km), the easiest way to get there is to take a plane from Lisbon. There are also direct flights from different European cities, and you can easily find a ticket from 50 euros one way at https://skysurf.travel.

airport of Madeira
airport of Madeira

Transport

The word “Madeira” means forest. Madeira used to be covered by subtropical forests many years ago. But after being discovered, people burned most of it for agriculture, buildings, and roads.

Walking through the Madiera forest
Walking through the Madiera forest

It is a tiny island, 57 km long and 22 km wide. But if you want to see at least something you need to use transport. There are some options – you can rent a car, use public transportation, or a taxi.

Public transportation

First of all, after arriving at the airport, you need to catch a bus to the city center of Funchal. Tickets cost 5 euros, but you can buy a round trip ticket per 8 euros. This bus does a circle in Funchal around all the most critical places and hotels.

Except for the airport bus, there are four companies which do bus transfers in Funchal city all over the island. The price depends on the company and distance. It is not so easy to discover the island by public transportation. There are no itineraries or timetables on all of the bus stops, so you need to use the internet and always have a plan B on how to get to your next destination.

Cable car

Faja Dos Padres Cable Car
Faja Dos Padres Cable Car

On Madeira Island, there are five cable cars. Some of them are for tourists, and some for farmers – to transport grain. Usually, they are expensive, for example, Faja Dos Padres cable car costs 10 euros round-trip, and Funchal – Monte cable car costs 16 euros round-trip. Sometimes you have no other option to get to the destination, but in certain situations, I think it is not worth it.

Car rental

One of the most comfortable ways to travel around Madeira is to rent a car. You can find popular European rentals and some local services. Usually, the second option is much cheaper (from 24 euros per day), and they don’t ask for a deposit on your credit card.

Tourist transport

There are two hop on-off buses in Funchal. Their routs are almost the same, so if you are interested in a quick excursion and don’t have a car, this is the best decision. The Yellow Bus ticket costs 15 euros (13.50 euros if you buy online here https://www.yellowbustours.com/en-GB/Madeira/Circuits/Funchal-Tour.aspx )
City Sightseeing ticket costs 19 euros (buy online here https://city-sightseeing.com/en/78/funchal/84/hop-on-hop-off-funchal).

Where to stay

As Europe’s leading island destination, Madeira has lots of hotels near the seaside. They are great for a relaxing vacation, but if you are going to discover nature, I advise you to find something else. Firstly, you don’t need to stay at an expensive hotel. Secondly, they are located in a specific area far from all interesting places.

Funchal old city area
Funchal old city area

If you are going to use public transportation, the best place to live is in the city center of Funchal. Right there you can find buses to get to different destinations of the island. Otherwise, you will need to wait and catch at least one more bus.

There are plenty of hostels, but if you are traveling with one more person, you can easily find apartments on Airbnb or Booking.com with your private bathroom, kitchen, etc. for the same price.

Are you a solo traveler? Try Couchsurfing! During my visit to Madeira island, I stayed with two hosts. Both of them were super friendly and told me lots of interesting facts about the island. I think I am lucky – all people whom I met in my adventure were so nice to me! For example, our first host – a local Portuguese man Nuno. He works in the airport and does paragliding in his free time. He showed his favorite bar to my friend and me and taught us how to drink local cocktails Poncha and Nikita. It is a unique experience!

Blue hour on the north part of Madeira island
Blue hour on the north part of Madeira island

Follow the blog updates.
New articles about Madeira coming soon!

– Romanna

Previous post: Life on Azores

Next post: Top 5 Things to Do in Madeira Island

Romanna’s trip to eight cities (five islands) in Europe cost a total of $815 (flights only).  To build your own cheap multicity itinerary, visit SkySurf.Travel.

View more photos of Romanna’s European SkySurf.Travel adventure on Instagram

To read more of Romanna’s SkySurf.Travel adventure blogs, click here.